Yesterday (7/2) IOM and partner agencies started to distribute 10,000 shelter kits, including plastic sheet and ropes, to some 10,000 displaced families currently sheltering in over 20 emergency accommodation centers in Mozambique’s southern province of Gaza, the worst affected area.

The floods, which were caused by ongoing torrential rains and the bursting of the banks of the Limpopo River, have so far caused 91 deaths and the displacement of some 150,000 people, most of whom are now in emergency centers.

IOM, working closely with the National Institute for Disaster Management (INGC), Save the Children, Samaritan’s Purse, the Mozambique Red Cross and UN partners, began the distribution of 2,450 shelter kits in Chihaquelane – the largest emergency center.

IOM is working with the government to plan and distribute additional kits to other centers in need of emergency shelter over the coming week.

“The CERF funding will help us to save lives and target the most vulnerable. There is a huge need for emergency shelter and the magnitude of the disaster means that in-country stock of supplies are becoming rapidly depleted,” says IOM Mozambique Chief of Mission Stuart Simpson.

The money will allow IOM to procure plastic sheeting, toolkits and other essential non-food relief items for another 50,000 to 75,000 displaced people in Gaza province over the coming weeks.

Meanwhile IOM is following the situation closely in Zambezi province and is prepared to intervene should the need arise. “The water levels are receding in the south, but in central Zambezi the rain and flooding is continuing to cause problems,” says Simpson.

On Monday, a team of Mozambican officials and humanitarian workers from COSACA (Concern) flew over the flood-affected areas. The aerial view showed farms submerged, with many crops completely destroyed.